Crash! Boom! Bam!

The intersection of Hull Street and Courthouse roads is the second most dangerous intersection in the county. Congested traffic and multiple lanes contribute to this designation. Lisa Billings/Chesterfield Observer The intersection of Jefferson Davis Highway and West Hundred Road (Route 10) saw the greatest number of traffic accidents last year, with 61 crashes taking place. The crashes resulted in 45 instances of property damage and 16 injuries.

“It’s a main thoroughfare going north to south and east to west,” says Lt. David Fuller, who oversees Chesterfield Police Department’s traffic unit. “You have a lot of traffic going between Richmond and Petersburg and a lot of traffic going between the county and the western part of Richmond down to the Tri- Cities area. There’s a lot of traffic volume through there.”

The same could be said for most of the intersections on the list of the county’s most dangerous intersections from 2009. Six intersections involve Midlothian Turnpike while three others involve Hull Street Road.

“These are main thoroughfares through the county,” says Fuller. “A lot of these accidents occur during those time periods when people are going to and from work and during the lunch hour.”

No fatalities occurred at the intersection of Jefferson Davis and West Hundred, nor at any of the top 11 most dangerous intersections in the county. In total, 23 fatal crashes occurred last year in which 24 people died. Four of these fatal wrecks involved alcohol. Three pedestrians died in crashes in 2009.

Fuller says more wrecks were caused by red-light violations at the Jefferson Davis/ West Hundred intersection than anywhere else in the county. There were more DUI-related accidents at the Hull Street Road/Courthouse Road intersection than anywhere else.

Fuller will analyze the 2009 statistics, which were just released last week, and assign his traffic team to monitor intersections where the most red-light infractions, DUI occurrences and speeding violations take place.

As for driver safety, he recommends common sense.

“Put your seatbelt on,” Fuller advises. “Obey the speed limit and all traffic laws. Pay attention to what’s going on around you. Don’t let your cell phone, your friends, the CD player – or anything – distract you, especially in these high-volume areas.”

2009’s most dangerous intersections